Jarrod Jupiter

History

Purple Haze

Loren Jupiter is known throughout the world for his vast wealth and incredible philanthropic initiatives. But the benevolent billionaire is not without his secrets. In his younger years, Loren fathered two super-powered children by two different women. The first was Jarrod Jupiter, who disappeared with his mother soon after his birth. The second was Lilith Clay, who Loren didn’t know existed and was raised by a kind couple in Kentucky. Both children endowed with extensive psychic powers, one might wonder if Loren himself possessed similar abilities, latent or otherwise.

Not much is known about Jarrod’s childhood, but by all appearances it was a traumatic one. Jarrod grew up feeling unloved and came under the delusion that his father had abandoned him. The tragic truth is that Jarrod’s mother kept him from Loren, for reasons that remain her own. And when the embittered teen learned that Loren Jupiter funded a group of young heroes, his acrimony increased exponentially.

Jarrod Jupiter lures the Titans to Cardy Boarding School
in a sick scheme of revenge – in TEEN TITANS #12 [1997].

While attending Cardy Boarding School, Jarrod learned he had the ability to mentally project images from people’s minds. He honed these newfound powers and began to formulate a plan of revenge. By murdering a handful of his classmates, Jarrod drew the attention of the Teen Titans, who arrived to investigate the mysterious disappearances. Jarrod – under the identity of Haze – forced the Teen Titans to think they were under attack by their disapproving mentors. But the Titans broke through Haze’s powerful illusions and exposed his true identity as Jarrod Jupiter, the long-lost son of their benevolent mentor. Enraged at the Teen Titans for co-opting his father’s affections, Jarrod’s subsequent outburst seemingly led to his own death. Believing the event proved too traumatic for the young heroes, Loren Jupiter used Lilith’s mental powers to erase the incident from the minds of the Teen Titans.

Don’t Haze Me, Bro

In truth, Jarrod had survived his initial encounter with the Teen Titans. And in the ensuing years, his hate for his father and the Titans grew. So when the Genesis Wave gave his mental powers a boost, it presented the perfect opportunity for revenge. To add flames to the fire, Loren Jupiter had recently recruited several alien-hybrid youngsters as his new incarnation of Teen Titans.

ABOVE: Haze uses his half-sister’s powers to augment his own in TEEN TITANS #15 [1997].
BELOW: And you think your family is dysfunctional?
The Jupiters have an impromptu therapy session in TEEN TITANS #15 [1997].

Jarrod targeted his half-sister, Lilith Clay, who had recently augmented her own impressive psychic powers as Omen. Jarrod became Haze once again, ambushing Omen and siphoning her psychic abilities to amplify his own mental manifestations. This deadly development led Loren Jupiter to call upon his former charges – now Nightwing, Arsenal, Flash and Tempest – to stop his super-powered son. With their erased memories of Jarrod Jupiter restored, the foursome teamed up with Atom’s Teen Titans to overcome their own insecurities and break Haze’s mind-altering manipulations. At this time, Lilith’s identity as Omen was revealed to her former friends and new colleagues, as was her familial connection to Mr. Jupiter.

Jarrod suffered a complete mental breakdown in the wake of this encounter. Trapped in a catatonic state, Jarrod was placed in a mental ward under observation. In his own mind, he lives out a deluded fantasy where he and Lilith grew up under Loren Jupiter’s loving guidance.

Powers & Abilities

By tapping into the heads of his victims, Haze can create convincing illusions from their thoughts and memories. The hallucinations are so vivid, they can cause increased emotional duress and even death. Haze’s abilities are somehow augmented by close proximity to his half-sister, Lilith.

Essential Reading

Teen Titans #12-15 [1997]: “Then and Now: Parts One-Four”: Nightwing gathers his old teammates to help find their former mentor, Mr. Jupiter, and the missing Omen, which leads to a confrontation with Haze, a never-before-seen villain from their past. Issue #12 features a never-before-revealed flashback tale involving Haze [First Appearance of Jarrod Jupiter, Loren Jupiter’s son; First Appearance of Haze]. In Issue #15: Omen is revealed to be Lilith. Lilith is revealed as the daughter of Loren Jupiter.Teen Titans #16 [1998]: As Joto is laid to rest, the kids are unresolved if they should continue. Mr. Jupiter answers that question when he dissolves the team. Arsenal muses about staying to train the new team. Lilith adjusts to everyone’s reactions to her revelations last issue. Lilith visits her bother, Jarrod, in a mental institution.

Sources for this entry: titanstower.com

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